Tyler seemed to be writing for an age before he finally put the pen back down and handed her the paper he’d been writing on. Isobel gulped when she saw how long the list was, and then she gulped again when she saw some of the things written on it, wondering if she’d bitten off more than she could chew. Oh well, she’d never know if she didn’t at least try.
Her new boss, albeit possibly temporary, got to his feet and Isobel followed suit, smoothing her skirt down as she stood and noticing that Tyler’s eyes followed the movement of her hands. “Follow me please, Isobel. Let’s get you settled in.” Oh, she’d love to be settled in; in the crook of his arms as he... She quickly put a leash on where her mind was taking her. Now wasn’t the time or the place, even if she did wish differently.
She was led through one of the doors, which turned out to be the entrance to what could only be called a secretaries office. There was a buzz of chatter as the five or so ladies who were present talked among themselves while they readied themselves for the work day ahead. The talk soon ceased however, as the boss walked in with a very quiet and subdued Isobel in tow.
“Good morning, ladies.” There was a murmur of answering greetings. “This is Isobel. She’s going to be my personal assistant, for today at least.” Isobel noticed the mixed reactions his news received. One lady beamed a smile in her direction, but most of them seemed to be pretty annoyed, and she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe they’d each been hoping that they would be the next personal assistant. Oh well, you snooze, you lose, bitches, she thought.
Tyler seemed oblivious to the mixed undercurrents running through the room, and carried on talking. “Mary, I’d like you to show Isobel where she can find everything she’ll need, please.” He spoke to the woman who had smiled at Isobel, much to her relief.
“Sure thing, boss.” Mary walked towards Isobel with a friendly smile.
“I’ll see you later, Isobel. Good luck.” With that, Tyler walked back through the door that led into his private office, leaving Isobel at the mercy of the women.
She looked around the room, smiling in a way that she hoped would show the women that she wasn’t there to make enemies, but to work. Mary caught the way everyone was glaring and seemed to take pity on her, placing her hand on Isobel’s arm and giving it a friendly pat. “Just ignore this bunch of cronies, hon.” Her voice was quiet, but not a whisper. “They’re just bloody jealous because you get to work up close and personal with the big man.” She winked and then frowned at the other ladies. “Don’t you lot have any work to do?”
Isobel watched everyone scurry off to their relevant work areas and then she followed Mary to a cubicle that was set apart from the others. “This is where you’ll be working. That’s when you’re not off running errands for Mr. James, of course.” There was a desk with a top of the line computer set up on it, a telephone that looked as though there were a hundred different buttons and a myriad of paper trays and filing cabinets, all of which looked full to the brim.
Isobel gulped as she took it all in, she’d never be able to figure any of this stuff out. She was doomed before she began, it seemed. Mary laughed at her expression and then hurried to reassure her. “Don’t panic sweetness. It’s not as hard as it looks, and if you need any help you just give me a holler. Okay?”
Giving a slow nod of agreement, Isobel looked at the piece of paper that Tyler had given her. “Is that your ‘to do’ list?” Mary asked.
“Yeah. And I have no clue where to even start.” Isobel’s voice gave her away with regards to just how nervous she was feeling. “I mean, he wants me to take his suit to the dry cleaners, but I don’t know where the suit is or which one he even uses.” Her voice had risen as she talked, and she took a deep, calming breath to calm herself down.
“It’s not as bad as it seems, hon. I’ll let you in on a little secret, shall I?” Mary was being so nice that Isobel could have hugged her, but she settled for just giving her a nod. “Okay, Jenny was always running late or disappearing when she should have been working, but she always expected us to cover for her so she left a list in her drawer of relevant information.” While she was talking, Mary had been rummaging through the desk, and she pulled out an A4 piece of paper with a triumphant flourish. “Ha! Here you go sweetie. This has contacts, Boss Man’s preferences and anything else you might need to know on it.”